Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a liquid discharge head and a method of manufacturing the liquid discharge head.
Description of the Related Art
A recording apparatus that records an image by discharging liquid such as ink or the like and that is represented by an ink jet recording apparatus includes a liquid discharge head. A discharge port is formed in such a liquid discharge head, and liquid is discharged from the discharge port using energy that is generated from an energy generating element.
Such a liquid discharge head includes a substrate and a flow-path-forming member. The flow-path-forming member is formed on the substrate and is a member that forms a flow path in which liquid flows and a discharge port that is in communication with the flow path. The flow-path-forming member is made of a resin, a metal, or an inorganic material such as silicon nitride.
Usually, a plurality of flow paths (liquid chambers) are formed on a substrate, and discharge ports each of which corresponds to one of the flow paths is formed. The plurality of flow paths, that is, the liquid chambers adjacent to each other are separated from each other by a flow-path-forming member that forms each of the liquid chambers.
A space may sometimes be formed between the plurality of the flow paths, that is, between a portion of the flow-path-forming member that forms one of the flow paths and a portion of the flow-path-forming member that forms a different one of the flow paths that is adjacent to the one of the flow paths. A liquid discharge head that includes a flow-path-forming member made of an inorganic material is described in PCT Japanese Translation Patent Publication No. 2010-512262 (hereinafter referred to as “Patent Document 1”). In a process of manufacturing a liquid discharge head described in Patent Document 1, mold members each of which is configured to form a flow path (a liquid chamber) are formed on a substrate, and an inorganic film is applied by a chemical vapor deposition method (a CVD method) in such a manner as to cover the mold members. Then, discharge ports are formed in the inorganic film, and at last, the mold members are removed, so that the flow paths are formed. In a liquid discharge head that is manufactured by such a method, an inorganic film is formed along mold members each of which has the shape of a liquid chamber, and thus, a space is formed between the mold members. In other words, a space is formed in a flow-path-forming member formed between the flow paths. In the case where a space is formed in the flow-path-forming member in this manner, the strength of the liquid discharge head may sometimes be low. Accordingly, Patent Document 1 describes that such a space is filled with a filling material.